11-yr-old maid brutalized with chillies, trader held

Thane: In a shocking case of brutality, an 11-year-old domestic help was allegedly starved for days and tortured by her employers, who inserted green chillies into her genitals to make her obey their orders.

The victim, who was brought from Uttar Pradesh for household work, approached the police on Saturday with the help of her neighbours in the housing complex at Ghodbunder Road, where she worked for accused Sarjil Ansari (36) and Farhat Ansari (32), PI Dhanaji Kshirsagar of Mira Road Police Station said.

The maidservant, whose body bore several old and fresh injury marks, was allegedly beaten up frequently over petty issues and was made to starve for days together.

The Ansaris even force fed her chillies and inserted it into her private parts, if she disobeyed them, the girl alleged in the complaint. The allegations are being verified, the official said.

After the girl managed to reach the cops, Sarjil, a local trader, was arrested on Sunday and produced in a local court, which remanded him in police custody till January 21.

However, his wife Farhat is still at large and searches have been intensified to nab her, Kshirsagar said. The accused duo has been charged under sections 323, 324, 374 of the IPC. The girl is presently in the custody of a NGO, which rescued her.

According to police sources, the minor, who was promised a job in a Mumbai household, was "sold" to the Thane couple by her parents for Rs 15,000, a fact which is still being probed.